Blues In The South published a short review from Norman Darwen on the new ElectroBluesSociety single:

Bluesman Roscoe Chenier recorded some fine material for Black & Tan, including this fine a cappella rendition of the old gospel standard, released in 2006.

On this new single download release, ElectroBluesSociety have added a modern, bass heavy musical accompaniment including slide guitar it is actually pretty sympathetic and effective. The track runs to five minutes long, and although purists may sneer, if it brings a new audience to the blues, it will have done its job.

The traditional hymn ‘Will The Circle Be Unbroken’ is one of Gospel’s most recorded songs. Soul folk will most probably know and cherish the haunting rendition from the Staple Singers. An equally haunting version was cut by bluesman ROSCOE CHENIER in 2006. His acaplla take was recorded for Black and Tan Records. It was, in fact, the Louisiana born Chenier’s last recording (he died in 2013) and amongst the gospel and blues community it has acquired an almost mythical status. The track has just been reissued by Black and Tan, but for the release they’ve added musical backing from Dutch band, ElectroBluesSociety, the sparseness of which manages to enhance the ethereal quality of Chenier’s original vocal. The single is out now.

Dutch Blues act ElectroBluesSociety release a hauntingly spectral musical accompaniment to the late Roscoe Chenier’s acapella rendition of gospel standby “Will the Circle Be Unbroken”. Interestingly, ElectroBluesSociety, a Dutch blues act, comprised of Jasper Mortier (drums, bass) and Jan Mittendorp (guitar, production), who worked with Roscoe Chenier on several releases and several European tours decided to pay tribute to their late friend by adding a spectral and moody arrangement Chenier’s vocal that’s appropriately bluesy yet subtly modern, while retaining the timeless vibe of the original vocal take.

David Philips – Winter (Black & Tan B&T 962)UK born but long based in Spain, David Philips has been working over the last few years as a folk inflected artist for Holland’s Black & Tan Records, one man and a guitar, and so this release for the blues label – David’s sixth, not including a couple of remix tracks – might come as a surprise. It is still a solo effort, but the guitar is electric, blues harmonica crops up occasionally and there is a rhythm section behind David’s excellent vocals. All the songs are David’s of course, he plays all the instruments, and he even provided the cover art. The sound ranges from indie-rock to blues, with comparisons being drawn with Ryan Adams and Doyle Bramhall II; I also hear a little Tom Petty in there too, ‘Running’ opens with a riff a little like Jimi Hendrix’s cover of ‘All Along The Watchtower’ before turning in the direction of Neil Young maybe, and ‘That’s Alright’ recalls early 70s Pink Floyd with a long, space-y passage. Mind you, ‘The One’ is a strong slab of blues-rock. This release contains eight rootsy, hook-laden songs, and if this review has intrigued you, then do check out this release..
Norman Darwen

November 2016 to March 2017 David Philips locked himself in his studio and spent the winter months writing and recording new material. Harking back to the full band sound of his debut album, but this time with a grittier sound centred mainly around the electric guitar and his new found love of the drum kit. Very much the studio loner David wrote, recorded and produced the whole record himself, playing all instruments and also designing the artwork. David says of the writing process : “With these songs I was experimenting with a new way of writing, something much more spontaneous, organic and immediate, trying my best to keep the inner critic at bay for as long as possible. I was able to centre the songs around what I hope are strong hooks and allowing myself to write with the electric guitar rather than the acoustic gave the songs a different energy.” Stylistically sitting somewhere between Ryan Adams and Doyle Bramhall II, yet as ever with his own instantly recognisable sound, Philips mixes pop, blues, rock and a touch of soul on this compact and to the point collection of 8 new songs entitled simply “Winter.”

The music will be released digital only and is available on all download and streaming platforms.

It might be mid-March but Winter is coming…the new musical concoction from David Philips, that is. The British ex-pat singer-songwriter performed his familiar ritual of holing himself up in his home studio and emerged with a fresh batch of recorded originals. Winter, recorded over much of this still-lingering cold season, is expected to drop in late March/early April through Black And Tan Records, but the folks over at Black and Tan have already provided a preview of what to expect. “Home” is the advance single from Philips’ newest creation, now available in digital form, and streamable above. What is immediately noticeable from followers of Philips is that he went ‘full band’ this time, not unlike 2015’s If I Had Wings but all instrumentation here and the rest of the album is handled by Philips alone and he remains firmly on the folk reservation this time. Actually, Winter could be thought of as a proper follow-up to his debut record. Still, it’s a bit of a jolt to hear his twelve-string acoustic guitar soon joined by harmonica, bass, drums, backing vocals and more guitars. What isn’t different is a voice with the warm soulfulness of Aaron Neville and a bright melody that sticks with you long after the last chord rings out. David Philips might change his tactics from time to time but the overall strategy of delivering quality, hand-made folk music never wavers.

Today we released the first single from an upcoming David Philips album

B&T 961 – David Philips – Home

November 2016 to March 2017 David Philips locked himself in his studio and spent the winter months writing and recording new material. Harking back to the full band sound of his debut album, but with more grit, more electric guitar, more to say and a clearer idea of how to say it. Very much the studio loner David recorded and produced the whole record himself, playing all instruments and also designing the artwork. “Home” is the upbeat new single from this collection of recordings entitled simply “Winter” due out April 10 !